Should kids have locks on their bedroom doors?

1. What is your opinion about children having locks on their doors?
2. If they should have locks on their bedroom door, starting from what age?
3. What types of lock? Would you allow a lock that can only be opened from the inside like a bolt style lock?

147
Everyone is entitled to their privacy, however isn't a closed door privacy? Why do they need a lock? If they have a lock wont that allow them to also lock their parents out and to sneak things and do inappropriate things that their parents have no way of monitoring?

This is my opinion: Hope its not too long.
The question is what is the lock for? Is it for when they are inside the room? or when they leave the room/house?So no one can enter even Totty or Mommy? Some people no matter what age they are like things to be private, have things a certain way, nice and neat not moved around things borrowed and not returned etc.. especially teenagers I think. Let's say if you live in a house with a bunch of kids and some have a tendency to take with out asking etc.. Or if they say they want to study/homework and the 10 year old needs to nudge at that time.
Now if it is for something like that you need to know who your dealing with, you need to have some trust, if you live in a smaller apartment or in a house where there is no place for some one to hide for some privacy to rest, read a book, study, then some consideration needs to be given.
One example I know a family that had to buy a little case with a lock for one child because the other had a eating disorder and they couldn't keep any nosh, snack for the next day laying around, it was either the the lock or nothing at all and that's not fear.
But the healthy adults are able to get in and put in nosh and clean the box etc..
Now if it's for when they leave the house the question is how old they are? If they are children that depend on your care no matter how old they are you should have access to that room at all times. And not because you don't want to trust them, you tell them its because you do want to trust them, Totty and Mommy also share the same room and there is a difference between hiding things and not touching someones things with out permission. It's ok to lock a door, but not to let anyone in is not right.

Now, if its an adult child living in your house I thing it depends on the condition's and terms you have worked out. It depends on the situation and if you feel you need to have access to that room then discuss it respectfully with them. Everyone is entitled to respect and privacy.

By the way I knock before entering my Second Graders room as well, if the door is not open. You teach them respect by giving it.

Yes, but it should never be locked when they are sleeping. It's a fire hazard.

It does depend on family dynamics. If there is a step-parent, or not everyone in the home is related the same way, of course there has to be a lock. But there also has to be a means of unlocking from the outside.

I always worried about putting a lock on my daughter's door because she was a very sound sleeper and if there was Chas V' Shalom a fire then I would have to break down the door and it would take time when every second counts.

Yes. Especially if she is a girl so she shouldn't have to worry about brothers coming in by accident when she is getting dressed and stuff like that. Also, everyone needs privacy and should have a place to go when they just want to be alone. Better in the house then out of the house.

Is the OP asking whether parents should be able to lock kids up in their rooms? If a young child is locked in a room one may break down the door on shabbos as it is potential pikuach nefesh.

Certainly one must not l'chatchila lock a child in a room - unless the child is older when there is no longer a sakanoh. Thus the shaylah is at what age is it no longer a sakonah to lock up a child in a room?

The OP is assuming that it is legal and not against dina d'malchusa to do so, which is in itself a shaylah that requires legal expertise.

@rebdoniel
What age are you talking about? There really shouldn't be anything private between parents and their kids. Granted if the child is getting dressed in their room vs in a bathroom there is what to discuss. But as a parent I'd be very concerned if my child was locking their door too much

im surprised noone mentioned the danger of letting teens lock their doors. im a teenager, and many of my classmates go on the internet without their parents knowledge or approval. if you know you can trust your kid, great, but i personally only have one friend that can truly be trusted on the web. and im in a reputable by school.

the-art-of-moi- I think there is a greater danger of not allowing the teen to have a lock. Any teen can go to the local public library and access the internet there. If they want unfiltered internet, they can go to the local internet cafe. If the parents don't allow them even a lock on their door to allow them to get dressed in their rooms, that shows a lack of trust. When you don't trust someone, they give you a reason not to trust them.
On the other hand, if parents make filtered wi-fi readily available, and get a list that cannot be deleted of any site accessed over the network, the parents can get a general idea of where their kid is up to without infringing on their teens privacy.

IMO - no. BUT------NO one should enter their room without knocking and without permission, unless there is a serious and well-founded concern of some type. Kids need privacy, but there has to be seichel involved as well. The ones least in need of locks, are the ones who are most trustworthy. If they "need" a lock, they are possibly up to something, or know that their PARENTS are not so trustworthy and are snooping.

If there is a proper healthy relationship between the parents and the child, there should be no need for locks on a door. And if the child is giving their parent cause for suspicion to look around their room then even more so there should not be any locks.
A parent who is wise, with a child who is sensible and does not have anything to hide, would agree that it is privacy enough just to close the bedroom door, and would certainly not go snooping around their child's room to find incriminating evidence.

This name...
"not allowing a lock is asking them to go OTD"
Thanks for sharing with us the real reason kids go OTD.

Oomis
I think parents should snoop because unlike when you grew up a kid can have an itty bitty hand held device loaded with movies non Jewish music and what not that doesn't belong in a frum home. A parent has an obligation to snoop and keep an eye on things. Unfortunately every child has a few classmates who are a negative influence on the class and you never know if your Tzadik or Tzadekes was innocently lent an ipod or other thing with inappropriate material. If you don't monitor your kids today you are simply irresponsible and don't really care.

Gamanit: While what you said is true, I assume that access in a locked room is much much much much more dangerous than using the library or even an internet cafe.
As I said, parents should be the ones providing the wi-fi, and seeing what their child is looking at. Parents should use common sense though- if a kid is spending hours in a locked bedroom, the lock should be taken away. If he/she is simply locking the door for a half hour in the morning to get dressed, and the same at night, I see no reason he/she shouldn't have one. As much as you may knock before opening your childs door, it's still uncomfortable getting dressed when the door is not locked.

i know it sounds funny, seeing as im a teen, but i am happy my parents dont trust me. well, im not happy, id rather they did, but in the past when they trusted me on the internet(we didnt have a filter back then) i did some stuff i really regret. it is really hard to have self control on the internet. maybe its just me, i seriously have issues with self control, but i know someone that found a website that undermined everything shed been taught about yiddishkeit, i felt really bad for her and i didnt want her to ruin her life, so i told her parents about it and they took the lock off her door_- bh she was saved in time but not everyone has friends like me so i would not recomend your teenager having a lock on her bedroom door.

I think parents should snoop because unlike when you grew up a kid can have an itty bitty hand held device loaded with movies non Jewish music and what not that doesn't belong in a frum home. A parent has an obligation to snoop and keep an eye on things. "

I hear you, but there is a difference between MONITORING (knowing where your kids are, putting filters on the computer at home, knowing who their friends are and whether THEIR parents are equually vigilant) and SNOOPING. Would you want them to take a leaf from your book and snoop in YOUR things (and if they are the type that you cannot trust, they WILL do that)? But yes, I do believe we have to be careful with our kids and snooping should be reserved for when you see there seems to be a problem (i.e., change in personality, secretiveness that is atypical, suddenly slipping in school grades, not following house rules and acting irresponsibly).

interjectionin·ter·jec·tion noun 1. an abrupt remark, made esp. as an aside or interruption

the-art: I don't know if that's not gonna come back to bite you. If there's one thing that has always turned me off about other people is a tattle tale.

If my parents had taken away my lock I would've left home. I actually have a friend whose parents didn't like that she locked her door so often (this was before she didn't anything rebellious or 'curious')
So they took away her lock. She left home within a few months and soon after stopped being shomer shabbos or kosher. So I don't think they made the right move

I don't understand. Everybodys privacy should be respected and protected. If you want to enter a room, KNOCK! No answer? KNOCK AGAIN! Call out the persons name or something, Im sure you can figure it out. You have absolutely no permission to enter unless you are told otherwise. Its simple Derech Eretz. Maybe children need locks because their family members (parents included) cant be trusted with the basic considerate decency of waiting for permission to enter?? Why must we need locks to teach our nosy noses its limits of invasion?? In the perfect world LOCKS WOULD NOT EXIST.

It's about privacy and whether children and teenagers should be trusted by parents to be alone in their room because they might get up to no good!

I'm kind of surprised to see a lot of these responses. Most of them seem to suggest that children/teenagers shouldn't be allowed to go out on their own lest they do something wrong due to a lack of supervision. Is one better off growing as an individual through both success and failure or should they be overly-protected and never have the opportunities to do so? Seems rather obvious...

My view? Rather than not trusting your children (which is inherently messed up), TEACH them what is right and wrong. At least have a conversation with the children as to why or why not they may be provided with locks or not. It seems almost passive-agressive to simply not provide a lock due to a lack of trust. Children/teenagers won't take anything away from that except "my parents don't trust me or value my privacy".

I am shocked that this is even a question. PARENTS should have a lock on the door. CHILDREN should NOT have a lock on their bedroom doors.

We have witnessed a large contingent of the "yeshivish/chassidish" world organize pointless asifa after pointless asifa when all along sane and normal parents everywhere know that the only thing that has a chance of stopping your kids from doing anything horrible is open, honest communication and a watchful and caring eye. Just exhibiting your child you are there for them.

And there are those of us who actually believe that with all our children have access today that we should actually hand them the gun and allow them to lock themselves in a room to do as they please?

What a great way to open a line of communication between parent and child.
My dear child, why do you want a lock on your door? Dear parent - now listen, hear, and try to understand your child's answer.

Consideration - parents must have keys to all locks on all doors. Discussion will set up conditions where parents can open the lock without the child's knowledge or permission.

When I was a teenager, my bedroom door had a lock on it because it was that way when we moved in, not because we installed it. I only remember locking the door once-- when I was crafting birthday presents for my family and didn't want anyone to walk in, see what I was doing, and ruin the surprise. My mom actually did try to come in while I was working and asked me why it was locked. I explained later when I gave her her gift.

I hear what people are saying about basic consideration and that a closed door should be enough, but honestly, people are people and sometimes it just isn't enough. People are careless and forget. More than once I have been walked in on while changing by people who just don't think.

And JewishFeminist02, though I have not spoken to Toi about this, I think I speak on behalf of Toi when I say your parents should have NEVER provided you with a lock and should have removed it immediately upon becoming aware of its existence.

what's in a name: Huh? Why would you speak on behalf of Toi? I made it pretty clear that my parents never "provided me with a lock", that I only once actually used the lock, and then for something entirely innocent, and that I was not a young child at the time (hence no safety concerns).